THE Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) has said that shortlisted bidders for the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) 10 national integrated power plants would be announced on August 8, 2013.
The Director General of BPE, Benjamin Ezra Dikki, disclosed this in a presentation to prospective investors in Hong Kong during a road show jointly organised by the NDPHC and BPE.
According to a statement by BPE's Head, Communication, Chigbo Anichebe, Dikki stated that the sale of the power plants falls within the context of President Goodluck Jonathan's Transformation Agenda which, he said, seeks to, among others, create a conducive atmosphere for private capital inflows.
Dikki noted that besides power, the transport and housing sectors, development finance institutions and the Abuja Commodities and Stock Exchange that will introduce the warehouse receipt trading system, there are also great investment opportunities awaiting interested local and international investors.
He said BPE and NDPHC are partners in the transaction for the sale of the 10 power plants, adding that BPE is legally authorised to sell Federal Government's 47 per cent shares, while NDPHC has the authorisation of the states and local governments to sell 53 per cent of the 80 per cent shares on offer.
Dikki extolled that the BPE will add significant value to the process, using its vast experience in privatisation of assets in Nigeria, spanning nearly 500 transactions in its 25-year history. The most recent, he noted, was the sale of the 15 Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) successor companies.
He advised prospective bidders to learn from the lapses of those who participated in the previous bid processes. According to him, the lapses include failure of some bids to substantially comply with the Requests for Proposal (RFP), failure to meet the threshold of required tangible net worth, failure to submit bid bonds, failure to submit audited accounts and failure to submit bids on time.
The BPE boss noted that the intension of the Expressions of Interest (EOI) process for the sale of the power plants was to improve on the rigorous requirements of the PHCN successor companies' privatisation transactions. He said: "It is critical that all interested parties/potential investors go through the EOI guideline document"
He restated to the potential investors that the deadline for the submission of expressions of interest remains 19th of July 2013, warning that the date would not be extended.
In his address, Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State, who is also the chairman of the Joint Technical Committee for the transaction, said electricity power is the bedrock of the development agenda of the current administration in Nigeria, adding that it is the policy of the Federal Government to ensure that solid foundation is laid.
The governor said the three tiers of government – local, state and federal – have invested well over $8 billion in building the 10 power plants. Suswam noted that with a population of over 160 million, Nigeria is the largest market for investors in Africa and the atmosphere is conducive for investments.
The Deputy Chairman of the Senate Committee on Power, Chris Ngige, said the proceeds of over $2.6 billion raised by the BPE in the privatisation of PHCN successor companies, is the largest from privatisation transaction ever in Nigeria and one of the largest on the African continent.
The Guardian